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Saturday, February 27, 2010

CANADIAN POLITICS-VANCOUVER:

DEMONSTRATIONS TO RING OUT THE OLYMPICS:

The great Olympics party will soon be drawing to a close, and it's sure that the hangover will follow close behind as the taxpayers find out how much they will have to cough up. Public funding for the athletes will shrink until the nest needed boost for political optics. The opposition to the Games, however, plans to have some closing ceremonies of their own on the final day. Here, from the Olympic Resistance Network, is the line-up for tomorrow. You pick where these will sit on the podium.

VOVOVOVOVOVOVOVO

Feb 28: Three events‏North side of the Vancouver Art Gallery

9 am Sunday the 28th of February

Resistance bike ride! Bikes are green! Olympics are NOT green!

In resistance to these Olympics on stolen native land, to imperialism, hegemony, environmental destruction, criminalization of poverty... we'll ride to support real people in the streets! Come meet us at the VAG to leave very shortly after 9 am!

We will not let the oppressions of the world flow smoothly and be celebrated as a success! Afterward we'll party in the streets to show them that they're gonna to leave, but we're all stayin'!

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[ please post far and wide - sorry for cross postings ]

Games Over! Resistance Lives!

*Celebrating Unity & Solidarity*

*Sunday FEB 28th, 2010 at 1:00 PM

Smithe and Cambie Followed by celebration at 4:30 pm of 2 weeks of dignity, hope and freedom at Olympic Tent Village. *[ more information on tent village here: olympictentvillage.wordpress.com ]

Bring the NOISE! Pots, pans, drums and noisemakers welcome! Join us in a noisy public festival to celebrate our communities and our resistance. Just because the IOC says the games are over doesn't mean it's over.

Our struggles for justice as indigenous, migrant, poor, working class and queer communities existed before the Olympic and Paralympic games and will exist after. The games have also provided a spark that we hope will inspire all effected communities to bind together in our coming struggles to attain justice.

These were not the greenest games - they were the corporate greenwash games. They were not the socially responsible games - homelessness tripled as billions were spent on highways and convention centers for the rich. And these games occurred on un-ceded territories where the indigenous communities continue to be on the front lines defending lands from industrial expansion.

In the coming budget BC residents will likely see massive cuts to healthcare, education, affordable housing, public transit, sports and recreation, and other priorities. While the IOC, VANOC and the ableist games will be gone, we are still here!

Join us after the rally at the Olympic Tent Village to celebrate 2 weeks of dignity, hope and freedom. The festivities start at 4:30pm at58 West Hastings.

The Olympic Tent Village was established on Monday February 15 on the empty lot at 58 West Hastings. The lot is owned by Olympic sponsor Concord Pacific, which has plans to build 160 condos on the site. Before being liberated as the Tent Village, the lot was being used as a VANOC parking lot.

Instead of empty lots and empty promises, the Olympic Tent Village calls for:

1. Real action to end homelessness now

2. End condo development and displacement in the Downtown Eastside

3. End discriminatory ticketing, police harassment, and all forms of criminalization of poverty

VANCOUVER - The Olympic Resistance Network (ORN) has declared the success of the Convergence and protests against the 2010 Winter Olympics as a victory both against the Olympic industry and for local struggles for social and environmental justice. In spite of the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) attempts to cover up the human rights and environmental violations of the corporate sponsors and host governments, the mobilization of communities across the country has forced the issues of homelessness, colonization, policing, public debt and environmental destruction into the public debate.

With just a few thousand dollars and volunteer labour, the success of the anti-Olympic movement is truly impressive considering the $6-7 billion budget backing the Olympic Games. The Games have left a clear legacy of resistance, as more than 30 cities across Canada disrupted the torch relay and hundreds of organizers, activists and independent media attended the Convergence from across Canada, the U.S., and internationally. The Convergence began with a two day summit of speakers, panels, and workshops in which hundreds of people participated. February 12th, the day of the Opening Ceremonies, the torch relay was disrupted 3 times in Vancouver alone. That afternoon more than 3500 people marched in the Take Back Our City demonstration that was led by indigenous elders and included environmentalists, faith-based organizations, student groups, migrant justice activists, anti-poverty organizers and many more.

On February 13th, the first full day of competition, the city woke up to the 2010 Heart Attack demonstration which attained its goals of clogging the streets and disrupting "business as usual" by shutting down the Lion's Gate Bridge traffic.(????-Molly)

February 14th, ORN stood in solidarity with the annual Women's Memorial March to honor murdered and missing women from across BC and Canada. The march was the largest in recent memory with at least 4000-5000 people.

On February 15th hundreds of people marched through the streets of downtown Vancouver against militarization and the Olympic police state. That same day, people established a tent city at 58 West Hastings Street, a Concord Pacific property leased to Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC). The site is still occupied so the world can see the ongoing resistance to the impact of the games and the broken bid promises.

The Convergence organized by the ORN provided the infrastructure to support these actions, some of which were coordinated by other groups and organizations. The ORN provided a diversity of ways for the public to get involved and voice their dissent over the Olympics industry. And while there have been suggestions of division within the anti-Olympics movement, organizers remain united in their opposition to the Olympics industry and celebrate the successes of the movement.

"We hope this corporate circus will continue to be confronted where ever it goes in the world by the people that are impacted by the Olympics industry including its sponsors. We hope that people will continue to see this spectacle as another point of resistance in addition to the WTO and G8. The impact of the Olympics on host communities can bring together the local struggles for justice and the struggles for radical change against these larger institutions” says Anna Hunter.

Much has been made of the politically motivated property damage on the morning of February 13th on the accusation that protesters discredited the movement. Yet drunken Olympic fans regularly engage in fist fights on the streets of Vancouver, urinate in alleys and commit random acts of vandalism. Not to mention the numerous security personnel sent home for misconduct. While focusing on a few broken windows, media have ignored the thousands of people that took to the streets fighting for social justice.

In the coming weeks BC residents will witness further cuts to social services. Tar sands pipelines, mines and logging operations continue to try and expand over unceded indigenous territories. And while the IOC, VANOC and the Games will be gone, we will still be here!

Community organizations and individuals that have participated in or supported activities of the ORN continue to fight for justice. On February 28th the ORN will be joining other community organizations in celebrating their resistance to the games and committing to ongoing organizing.